When We Come Face to Face
by Himitsu-Star
Summary: RuHana AU. Translated fic. Rukawa Kaede can't understand it. Who is this red-haired boy, and what does he mean-- Shohoku has no basketball club?
1. 01

© Original Story by BookOcean

© 2004 English Translation by Himitsu Star

Disclaimer: Slam Dunk in its full glory is created by the great mangaka Takehiko Inoue. My **very grateful thanks to BookOcean for permission.**

**Notes: I wish to share this Chinese fanfiction with the English-speaking Slam Dunk fandom. The original story is at It is an amazing piece of RuHana fiction. I obtained special permission from the author, BookOcean, for this purpose. The original story is hers, and I have been very, very faithful to the original, with practically literal translations, and I have done my very best to capture the author's original style, although I suspect Lost In Translation is something that couldn't be helped here. Been a bit painful translating, but this story is worth it. It has, I feel, a very unique storyline, and it's very special. A RuHana AU, you just HAVE to read it. I hope that you will enjoy it! Please review!**

非常感谢 BookOcean批准!

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**Title: When We Come Face to Face– A RuHana AU by BookOcean**

**01**

The dark days of the killer high school entrance exams were long past and it was now the beginning of a new school year. This year, Shohoku High School had well over two hundred new students in its freshman batch. Amongst the many new faces in Shohoku was a boy who was making his way in his customary half-asleep daze to the school basketball courts located some distance from the main school buildings. Tall and dark-haired, he had the distinction of having barely set foot on the grounds of Shohoku High before he became the sensational new school heartthrob, and the center of much attention and fluttering of hearts amongst the girls there.

There was nothing very remarkable about this boy except, perhaps, for the fact that he loved to play basketball. It was a game that he had played since he was a very small child, and he himself had never had any particular reason for playing it. It was just that he loved the game, and the familiar feel of the large, round, orange ball in his hands warmed his heart in a way he could not explain. Perhaps it was one of his seniors who had best put it: it made him happy.

This senior was a girl from his junior high days, named Ayako, and who just happened to be his senior at his new high school, Shohoku. _Do you know_, she had said very thoughtfully to him once, _it's strange, but I get this feeling of real happiness, this joie de vivre, when I watch you play basketball? It's funny, I know… because matches aren't associated with joy. It's all about winning, and it isn't pretty to watch, because people go all out to do anything they can to win. It can get so ugly at times… yet watching you play always give me that feeling_. She wasn't the first person to have told him that; he had had teammates before, who had said as much to him._ You know, sempai, we always feel really happy when we're playing basketball together with you!_

_They're happy playing basketball with me?_ He didn't really understand what they meant, but it was not something that dwelt long on his mind, because the basketball courts that he had been looking for were now in plain view, with no one in sight, and he slowed down his steps. Well, whatever… let others think what they liked… he had never been terribly interested in brooding over their opinions!

_Dribble, dribble…bounce, bounce, bounce…_

The well-known sound of a basketball connecting rhythmically with the concrete flooring of an outdoor court brought him back to reality in a flash. There, on the courts that he had thought were empty, stooda tall, red-haired boy with his back to him, obviously a right-hander from the way he handled the basketball. The sudden appearance of a human being where there had been none just a second ago should have been startling, to say the least— how can people simply appear out of thin air? —Yet the black-haired boy found himself viewing the newcomer with no surprise whatsoever; it seemed perfectly natural for the redhead to be there.

It was very quiet there, so quiet that it seemed as if they were the only two people there, in that little world on the basketball court, and all the dark-haired boy could see was the vivid head of flame-red hair belonging to the other boy as he dribbled, drilled and shot; he could even hear every pant and wheeze as the other boy practiced. The sound of cicadas from nearby intruded into the silence, and for a moment, the dark-haired boy was startled at the sudden feeling that something was not quite right with the seasons— it was as if it was high summer, with the cicadas singing from the nearby trees… but wasn't it supposed to be early spring, when the cicadas had barely emerged from their winter hibernation?

The red-haired boy on the courts seemed to have been there for a long time; he halted briefly to tilt his neck to and fro in an effort to ease the sore muscles there, before beginning his practice again. This time, he concentrated on scoring, tossing the ball repeatedly towards the hoop: missed a shot, try again, missed another shot, try again, missed a third shot, try again, get it right, keep it going! The dark-haired boy could not help but be fascinated by that fierce concentration and persistence, and he stood very still, watching silently until the ball scooted out of bounds and towards the entrance to the courts, where he was. The dark-haired boy moved forward to pick up the ball, and in doing so, finally caught the attention of the other boy.

_Eh? Never seen that uniform before—what school is that? Wait—is he another one of those bloody outsiders trying to make trouble for the basketball club? They've already done enough!_ The redhead immediately scowled and raised his voice in an angry bellow. "Who are you?! No one from outside is allowed here!"

Instead of going away, the black-haired boy paused and stood there, very still, just looking at the redhead.

The redhead's temper boiled. "OI! ARE YOU DEAF, _KITSUNE?!?!?_!"

"_Do'aho._" His own rude reply shocked even the dark-haired boy himself.

"_HUH_!" If looks could have killed, the dark-haired boy might have been dead several times over. "Well, there isn't any basketball club here any longer—happy about that, aren't you!" The raging redhead would have preferred to teach that insolent dark-haired outsider a lesson with his fists, but he did not dare lay a finger on the dark-haired boy; he had already learnt _his_ lesson. There had been a fight not too long ago, with the result that the entire basketball club, of which he had been captain, had been disbanded by the school. He had gone to the school court that day simply to play a little of the game he loved… and look what that _kitsune_ had done, interrupting his precious basketball time!

_No basketball club?_ _What's he talking about?_ Shohoku's basketball team had made it to the final four of the All-Japan Nationals Schools Championships just last year! "_Do'aho_, what the hell are you talking about? Shohoku made it to the last four at the Nationals last year, and I just saw the team busily recruiting new members." It was the first time in his life that he had actually spoken more than a few short words to anyone, or felt the need to string more than a couple of monosyllables together in a conversation.

"_You're_ the one talking nonsense! The school ordered us to close down because of the fight last week… and we didn't even make it to the district finals last year, let alone Nationals!" The redhead stared at the dark-haired boy, feeling puzzled. "You're in the wrong school, aren't you? Look, your uniform's different from mine." He picked up the basketball, still looking somewhat perplexedly at the dark-haired boy.

"_Do'aho_." It was unreasonable, but the dark-haired boy found himself irritated by the redhead's manner.

The red-haired boy exploded with fury and he lunged forward to grab the other boy's collar. "WHO ARE YOU CALLING AN IDIOT?!?!"

The dark-haired boy shot out a long arm to block the redhead's incoming blow, but just as he was about to touch the other, _the_ _redhead vanished into thin air._

_What the…?_ Did the red-haired boy just… _disappear?_ Into _thin_ air? Had he just seen the boy simply fade away like colour ebbing from clothing after a few good scrubs? The dark-haired boy reached out a hand, and slowly flapped it in front of him. Had it just been his imagination…? Yet he felt deeply convinced of the fact that the redhead whom he had been talking to actually _existed_. So how could he have vanished just like that?

"_Rukawa_ _Kaede_!" The dark-haired boy was recalled violently back to the present reality by an outsized ruler descending forcefully on his head, which immediately snapped to one side. "Don't block the path! The basketball club is going to start activities in a moment. Have you handed in your application form?"

The wielder of the ruler was his senior, Ayako, and with her were a group of the basketball club members.

"Handed up already." He had never been much of a conversationalist, even with people he knew fairly well.

"Then what are you standing here for? Playing the doorman? Go in!" Ayako had always been a terribly… _energetic_… sort of person.

"_Sempai_… this is the basketball club, right?" After that strange encounter, he definitely needed that to be clarified.

"Rukawa, have you been sleeping and dreaming again?" If there was one thing Ayako knew about this junior of hers, it was that habit he had of falling asleep anywhere, everywhere, and at whatever time.

"_Sempai_." Rukawa's irritation at Ayako's comment was clear.

Ayako eyed him with undisguised amusement. "Well, of course this is the basketball club. What did you think it was? Don't waste time; go and get changed!" She emphasized her message with a few more blows of her trusty ruler, before leaving him alone to head for the courts together with the posse of basketball club members in tow.

_… who was that boy, then?_ Rukawa slowly walked to the basketball board where he had last seen the boy play and lifted his head to stare at the hoop above him. "Ayako-sempai, please pass me a ball."

Ayako threw him a confused glance; Rukawa was behaving rather peculiarly today. Nevertheless, she scooped a ball from the large metal basket of orange basketballs nearby, and threw it to him.

Rukawa easily caught it, and with one smooth motion, he aimed for the hoop. The ball sailed in through the net, and Rukawa caught it again, then aimed for the net one more time, in imitation of the redheaded boy he had seen practicing shots. _Who was that boy?_ But there was no answer to his silent question, and he did not bother to ask it aloud of anyone.


	2. 02

© Original Story by BookOcean

© 2004 English Translation by Himitsu Star

Disclaimer: Slam Dunk in its full glory is created by the great mangaka Takehiko Inoue. My **very grateful thanks to BookOcean for her kind permission to translate her Chinese fanfic. **

Personal Notes: Yay! The response has been very, very kind and very encouraging! My personal thanks to each reviewer is at the end of this fic. If I've missed you out, my apologies; I will rectify it in the next part. If you are reading this, and you liked it, please just drop a line to say so, even if it's a simple "I like this". Encourages both writer and translator, see! I have been very faithful to the original fiction, save minor changes: (i) the fiction was written in 2002, so I have changed the date to 2004; (ii), with permission, I have added minor elaborations to two paragraphs in this part, for the sake of coherency in English.

I love the subtlety of this whole fic, just so gentle, and careful in the RuHana interaction!

**在此再感谢** BookOcean!

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**Title: When We Come Face to Face– A RuHana AU by BookOcean**

**02**

A gentle breeze slipped softly through the sakura trees, stirring a shower of petals which fluttered through the air in delicate swirls of palest pink and white. Rukawa stood under the tree, bathed in the rain of petals and their light fragrance, and for a moment perhaps, he appeared to have stepped right out of some ancient historical time, where robe-clad persons stood under cherry blossom trees admiring the flowers in bloom.

… that is, until he saw _him_… that red-haired boy…

The redhead was standing under a majestic sakura tree that must have been at least a hundred years old, and that flame-red hair seemed even more vivid against the background of fluttering pink-and-white. He appeared deep in thought, head resting against the trunk, and hands pushed deep into his pockets.

Rukawa noticed this time the Shohoku High badge that was sewn on to the left breast of the redhead's school uniform, and beneath that badge, also stitched into the cloth, were the unmistakeable characters: _Year 2, Class 6, Sakuragi Hanamichi_. True, that uniform was different from his, though both sported the Shohoku school crest… Rukawa kept carefully in the shadows, watching the red-haired boy.

He had been looking for the red-haired boy all over Shohoku since that first day they met on the courts. He had gone through all the levels of the school, asking students from every year and every class, but the answer had always been the same: there was no student in Shohoku High with red hair! Yet how could that be…? Rukawa had been so certain that this red-haired boy existed… that all he had had to do was just to ask… surely _someone_ had seen him!

There was a small, but clear sound of frustration from the redhead leaning against the tree. Sakuragi Hanamichi was by now aware of another presence and he turned his head, only to come face to face with a dark-haired boy. This boy wore a different school uniform, and the school crest was visible on it, as was the name sewn beneath it. "Shohoku High School…" Sakuragi read aloud. "Year 1, Class 3, Rukawa Kaede…"

They stood there, one figure leaning against a tree trunk, another standing by a tree, eyes fixed on one another, as if asking in the silence: _Who are you? How is it that I can't seem to find you, wherever I look…_

"Rukawa-kun?"

The light, high sound of a girl's voice shattered the silence between them, and even as the last syllable rang lightly through the air, Sakuragi began to fade away.

_I'll be waiting for you at the basketball court_… They were the last words Rukawa heard from the red-haired boy before he utterly vanished from sight. Almost numbly, Rukawa repeated the words to himself, and then understood the invitation in a flash. He whirled immediately in the direction of the school courts, but again, he was interrupted.

"Rukawa-kun!" The newcomer was actually a girl, who had seen Rukawa standing under the sakura trees in the school yard, and believed that he had gone to meet her there, as she had asked him to in her letter confessing her crush on him. Yet, just as she was reaching the trees, he had simply brushed past her, ignoring her completely. Desperate not to lose him, she called out, "Rukawa-kun! I like you!" But the only reply she had was a brief, icy sentence the dark-haired boy threw back over his shoulder without a second glance, and carried to her ears on the breeze: _I've no idea who you are._

Rukawa hurried on his way, ignoring those he brushed by as he walked past, intent only on reaching the main school grounds. _Was that a spirit? _No—no, absolutely not.He couldn't be anything but a person, a live, flesh-and-blood human! –Ordinarily, Rukawa stood out in the usual crowds not only because of his outstanding height and build, but also because of the icy expression frozen on that handsome face. Yet as he hurried past his schoolmates at that moment, he turned more heads than usual, for in his wake he left a very sweet, honeyed scent that puzzled many as to its exact source.

Upon reaching the basketball courts, Rukawa pushed open the gate in the fence around the courts and hurried in. He looked around, but the courts were empty. Had he been too late? Rukawa hung his head, feeling deeply disappointed. Slowly he found himself a spot by a wall, and slid down to sit on the ground, back against the wall. The afternoon sun filtered in through the trees, bathing the courts in faint sunshine that was warm, but not blazingly hot. Like that red-haired boy, Rukawa thought hazily. The one named… Sakuragi Hanamichi…

"Heh, so you got here first, _kitsune_" He had just come in from the side of the court that led directly to the walkway connecting to one of the main school buildings, and his face was lit with the smile that reminded Rukawa so much of the sun. Rukawa noticed that the redhead had changed into a short-sleeved shirt and shorts, red-and-black basketball shoes, with a ball in one hand, and he was looking at Rukawa with a challenging gleam in his eye. _In-ter-est-ing._Rukawa promptly got to his feet and moved swiftly to stand directly opposite the redhead.

"One-on-one?"

Sakuragi made no reply, but smiled and tossed the ball to Rukawa, who caught it easily, the ball firm, large and very real in his hands.

"What year is it now, where you are?" asked Sakuragi nonchalantly.

"2004," replied Rukawa, completely unaware of the peculiarity of the question, and feeling a little annoyed with the redhead. _Well, even if you don't want to play a one-on-one, I'm going to make sure you stay here and play _something_ with me!_ With that thought in mind, Rukawa began dribbling, one eye trained on Sakuragi.

Sakuragi scratched his head. "You're from my future…" he muttered, wondering what it was that had allowed them to come face to face with each other. Seventeen years he had spent on this earth, and he had never had occasion to meet with ghost or spirit or other supernatural phenomena, and though he had never sought out a fortune-teller, some of the girls in school were fond of horoscopes, and had told him that his life would be very ordinary, with nothing exceptional about it, nothing at all. That, they had assured him with much laughter, was written in the stars. _Gah__, I've been had!_

"So what?" Rukawa clearly attached no importance or any peculiarity to their circumstances. _Future, schmuture, well, if you want to cook your brains thinking about it, go__ ahead!_

With a lightning-quick dart to the side, Rukawa slipped past Sakuragi and made a bee-line for the hoop. Once there, he leapt into the air, propelling himself forward with speed akin to one who had wings upon his back, eyes focused on the metal rim within reach—and then a strong , muscular pair of arms suddenly blocked his hitherto free path to the basket. Clearly, Sakuragi was not about to let him score that easily! But Rukawa had already guessed that the red-haired boy would do something like that, and he easily transferred the ball from his left hand to his right hand. Sakuragi immediately stretched out a hand to block Rukawa, but it was too late, for Sakuragi had made the mistake of concentrating too much on Rukawa's left side. Consequently, Rukawa easily slammed the ball through the hoop. The force sent Sakuragi tumbling back on to the floor of the court, where he lay in an ungainly sprawl, glaring up at Rukawa, who was hanging from the hoop with both hands.

"You stayed in the air for a long time," commented Rukawa.

"You're not too bad yourself." Sakuragi picked himself up and then bent down to pick up the ball. "Did Shohoku really make it into the Nationals?"

Rukawa had just landed lightly on the ground when he heard Sakuragi's question, and the disbelief in the redheaded boy's tone. He merely nodded his head briefly in answer, then decided to ask a question of his own. "Your basketball club got disbanded?"

Sakuragi bounced the ball a couple of times, and then began shooting into the hoop from just under the basketball board, whilst Rukawa caught the ball as it fell each time, before passing it back to the redhead. "Yeah, for fighting…"

… if the basketball club from the past was disbanded, then what about the club in the future... whichever way you looked at it, it was a sort of chicken-and-egg question. If the club in Rukawa's time had become one of the top four teams in the nation, then what about the disbandment of the club in Sakuragi's time… happening _after_ they had met and therefore _after_ the future Shohoku club had made its way into the top four? Or had the club disbanded in the past, and then somehow in the future the club had managed to make it into the final four of the Nationals?

_Gah_Sakuragi and Rukawa's faces wore identical disgruntled expressions of confusion. Whatever it was, there was clearly no way out of that mental maze and they weren't about to pursue that question now!

After a moment's silence, Sakuragi spoke. "Do you like playing basketball?"

"Yeah…"

But the red-haired boy had disappeared abruptly, before Rukawa even finished speaking, and the latter wondered if the other had even _heard_ his reply. But what Rukawa did hear, on his part, was Sakuragi's ringing declaration that he had called out just as he disappeared.

_Yeah, I like it a lot…_

_Then, I'll start it over again—for you! _

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My personal thanks:

Shazaluca: Thank you very much! I'm trying my best; bit difficult because the two languages are very different... :D

HalKJAkiko: There are seven parts to this story and I'm trying to persuade the writer to write an eighth towrap it up, for reasons I can't say yet. XD

KanonA: Yup, more parts! I have translated part 3 already,and there's good stuffcoming up! The story's meant to be mysterious and just enjoyed as a light read... nothing heavy. XD

ChibiReikou: Thanks! I am getting more ambitious... thinking of translating this writer's other Slam Dunk fics, one of which is a superb onewith 26 parts already...

DarkPhoenix484: Thank you!Translation was quite smooth, except for the difficulty iof finding equivalent English phrases. I find the Chinese fandom quite unusual in comparison with our English fandom... and hope to translate more in future!

Memeal: Thank _you_ very much for reviewing! :D Enjoy the rest of the story!


	3. 03

© Original Story by BookOcean

© 2004 English Translation by Himitsu Star

Disclaimer: Slam Dunk in its full glory is created by the great mangaka Takehiko Inoue. Once again, my **very grateful thanks to BookOcean for her kind permission to translate her Chinese fanfic. **

Personal Notes: I apologise. I have been very, very busy.However, I aim to finish translation by Christmas. It's actually easy to translate, but I'm just very tired after being at work all day.

Once more, I have placed personal thanks to each reviewer at the end of this part. And if I've inadvertently missed you out, my deepest apologies. I'll give my thanks to you in the next part!

If you are reading this, and you liked it, please just drop a line to say so. I have been very faithful to the original fiction and I hope readers will enjoy it.

**谢谢**BookOcean!

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Title: When We Come Face to Face– A RuHana AU by BookOcean

03

Rukawa lowered his head, staring at the basketball Sakuragi had left behind, the connection from the past that sat large as life and twice as natural on the palm of his hand. Rukawa could even feel the warmth on part of the ball, warmth that had come from Sakuragi's hands holding it, and it was incontrovertible proof that the two of them had somehow managed to meet in some sort of pocket out of time, a kind of space pocket, perhaps!

_The wheels of history begin to turn…_

Rukawa was unable to hide the smile that burst on to his face—or rather, he was unable to control the joy that ran, rampant and unbidden, through every part of him! He clutched the large orange basketball tightly to him, the ball that had the characters _Tensai Sakuragi Hanamichi_ scratched on to its surface. Ignoring the calls of the school janitor behind him, Rukawa grabbed his bag and flew out of the school, heading for home at a run.

_The wheels of history begin to turn…_

For the first time, he felt a burning ambition and a stunning desire to _win! _Yes, he hungered for victory, and to _make_ the future that he had seen _happen_! Sakuragi Hanamichi's strides grew longer and more confident as he hurried out of the basketball courts. He knew what to do now—and come hell and high water, nothing and nobody could turn him from that purpose!

_The wheels of history are turning, and each stroke and each moment in time is recorded as it takes place…_

Shohoku High's basketball team's transformation into a top-flight team began ten years ago, when they first made it into the top eight of the finals of the winter championships. Their captain was one Sakuragi Hanamichi, and the Shohoku teachers who had taught there all those years ago still remembered him and his glory days in Shohoku. He was a red-haired, wild boy with a habit of getting into fisticuffs and trouble round every corner, but to Shohoku, he was not only the school clown of sorts, but also the fighting catalyst of their basketball team.

Rukawa flipped page after page of newspaper cuttings he had obtained from the archives of the school newspaper, quietly absorbing everything he could about the red-haired boy.

"What are you looking at that's got your eyes glued to it?"

Rukawa did not need to look up to know the name of the intruder. The classroom he was sitting in was the one belonging to Year 3, Class 6, and it had been empty, save for Rukawa sitting alone by the window, reading through the newspaper clippings. "You're close to getting into the finals of the regional tournament, aren't you?"

"The final's tomorrow." The other boy in the classroom laughed as he threw himself into a chair and leant back against the desk behind him. "Why are you a in a third-year classroom, anyway?"

"To see if you lost." Rukawa already knew, of course, that the other boy would win, and in the course create the legend of how Shohoku became the first team to beat the mighty Kainan High School, unbeaten for the last seventeen years, marking the beginning of Shohoku's transformation into one of the top-flight high school basketball teams in all of Japan.

"Heh, you really think I'd lose? _Ore__ wa tensai!_" The boy chuckled, not at all angry, and deliberately reached out a hand to block Rukawa's view of the newspaper cuttings. Sure enough, Rukawa drew his brows together, a clear hint that he wanted Sakuragi to remove his hand. But Sakuragi continued grinning and he looked right into Rukawa's face. "Will you come and watch me play?"

Was that even possible? It was not that he didn't want to promise his attendance, but there was that little question of How To Get There. Rukawa lifted his head to look at the redhead sitting directly in front of him.

"I won't lose, because I'm the tensai, so come and watch!" Sakuragi gradually disappeared as he spoke, but Rukawa quickly nodded his head, and the last the dark-haired boy saw of the other was the pleased grin on the redhead's face.

"There you are, Rukawa Kaede! I've been trying to find you forever!" Ayako leaned against the door of the classroom, trying to catch her breath. Next to her was Miyagi Ryota, who had accompanied her, and was in a similar state of exhaustion.

"You're a freshman—you shouldn't be getting your seniors to run around looking for things for you!" Miyagi protested breathlessly, only to subside as Ayako shot him a Look.

Ayako and Rukawa were not exactly new acquaintances, and Ayako knew enough of her junior to be aware that it was not in his nature to make requests for assistance. So it had been a rather unusual occurrence for Rukawa to have sought her out a few days ago, and then asked her to help him find a tape of the regional high school basketball championship finals from a good nine years back, specifically the match between Shohoku and Kainan. To be honest, the task had been a near-impossible one from the beginning, for Shohoku's own basketball team had tapes going back just seven years, and the school newspaper archives had only the cuttings and some interviews regarding the match. Ayako had considered giving up the search, but it was difficult to resist Rukawa's pleas, and so she had exerted all her capabilities and connections as the basketball team manager, even going so far as to rope her boyfriend, Miyagi Ryota, also on the Shohoku team, into the quest.

It was in Ryonan High School's basketball club that they finally located what they had been looking for, and now Ayako triumphantly, if breathlessly, held out the tape to Rukawa: "Now you _really_ owe me for this!"

Rukawa picked up the newspaper cuttings and headed for the door. He plucked the tape from Ayako's fingers as he passed, and said by way of thanks: "I'll take us to the Nationals!"

"Huh, we don't need you to get there—_owwie_Aya-chan, that really hurt!" Miyagi was down on the floor before he knew what hit him, clutching the top of his head and nursing a sizeable bump, his face piteous as he looked up at his girlfriend.

"You keep quiet," ordered Ayako, looking thoughtfully at Rukawa's back as he walked away. "Ryota—when is our coach coming back?"

Still squatting on the floor in pain, Miyagi mumbled, "… Aya-chan doesn't love me anymore…"

His girlfriend just rolled her eyes at his antics and bodily dragged him away.

It was Sunday. The time was nine twenty-five in the morning, and the match would begin in five minutes. Rukawa, seated comfortably on the sofa in the living room of his home, hit the _Play_ button. Chaotic sounds immediately filled the living room. It was the Shohoku-Kainan match, and Rukawa was now watching it through the eyes of the cameraman who had videotaped this match.

The person who had videotaped the match had chosen an excellent seat; Rukawa could see the locker-rooms of both teams. Before long, it was time for the teams to make their entrance, and Kainan High emerged on to the courts first. There were roars from the crowd, cheers and stamps so loud that it startled even Rukawa, who dove for the remote control to turn down the sound.

As every member of the Kainan team emerged from the locker-room, Rukawa hurriedly matched each face to the statistics of the team profile Ayako had given him earlier. He had barely begun when the angle of the camera turned, and Rukawa froze, face to face with the Shohoku team, led by Sakuragi Hanamichi.

He appeared to be brimming with confidence. Rukawa plopped himself on the floor, moving nearer to the television screen for a better view and wishing that he had been there at that time to cheer Shohoku on. Perhaps it was coincidence, perhaps not, but at that moment, Sakuragi turned his head and looked right into the camera, as if looking straight _through_ it at Rukawa.

_You came._

_Yeah, I did._

And Rukawa knew that Sakuragi had seen him, somehow. Unable to help himself, Rukawa drew nearer still, and watched as the redheaded boy grinned at him: _Then I'll win for sure today._

* * *

--Of course we all know Sakuragi won... otherwise what's Rukawa doing there in Shohoku, part of a proud tradition of Shohoku basketballers?

And now for my thanks to:

_Reality-_I'm very, very happy to know you enjoyed it. I will probably toss out the remaining four chapters at one shot on ChristmasDay.

_Tensai11_- XD Well, it's not my story technically. It's a translation of a really good writer's story. Yep, four more chapters to go... although I plan to translate the rest either little by little, snatching five minutes from my lunch break now and then... or do the rest on X'mas Eve so it can be ready on X'mas Day.

_Chibi Reikou_-I was planning to begin translations of the second fic with the author's permission on New Year's Eve. However, I need to finish this first so she can see I am doing a good job!I hope you liked this part as well!

_ILLK- _Oh, you liked it! I'm so pleased! --The update is kinda late, but I had much work elsewhere in my ordinary life. XD

_Vero_-I am definitely going to complete this! I sincerely hope this part met with your expectations! XD

_Mimi-_Yes, itis a RuHana...I liked it because it was just so light and delicate and has a different plot and style from the usual AU RuHana story.

_k- _Hm, I think the ending is ... well, I can't tell you! But as I've said in my responses to the other reviewers, I'm gonna FINISH this fic! I like it very much... and in any case, I've sworn to myself to try to translate more RuHana fic for the English-speaking fandom. XD


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